When Sid Harvey last lined up against the Queensland Reds, it was in front of a loud and proud home crowd at Narrabri’s Dangar Park in the second round of the 2025 Super Rugby Aus competition during the Santos Festival of Rugby in September.
The next time the NSW Waratahs youngster faces them will be this Saturday night in round five of the 2026 Super Rugby Pacific competition when he makes his starting debut on the wing in the number 11 jersey.
The 20-year-old Narrabri boy was playing for the Australian Sevens team on the world stage this time last year, but last Friday his journey in the rugby arena took an even greater step when he debuted for the Tahs in a Super Rugby Pacific match, officially becoming cap number 1773 as he entered the field at Allianz Stadium in the 60th minute.
Harvey, the 2025 Rugby Australia junior player of the year, impressed during his 20 minutes on the park in the number 23 jersey, so much so that he has earned the trust of the coaching staff to start on the wing against the Reds in what is an important rivalry clash in enemy territory on Saturday.
Head coach Dan McKellar in particular was impressed with the Narrabri boy’s debut.
“Sid was probably one of the shining lights from last Friday. He’s just got this air of class about him, Sid, both as a footballer and as a human being. He’s got time, he’s very composed and doesn’t get rattled,” McKellar told Waratahs Media this week.
The NSW Waratahs are now fifth on the ladder following two wins and one loss across the first four rounds.
The Reds also hold that record, but they are a point behind the Tahs, making this Saturday’s clash at Suncorp Stadium all the more spicy.
NSW were beaten convincingly on Friday night at Allianz Stadium in round four as a red-hot Hurricanes outfit downed them 59-19.
The result was well and truly out of reach when Harvey entered the field, and he produced a handful of moments of brilliance during his 20 minutes on the park.
The Narrabri boy told The Courier that it was a special feeling to make his Super Rugby Pacific debut.
“It was a surprise to me, originally. I had just assumed it would be the same team as the week before, but we got to the team meeting and when it got to number 23, I saw my name pop up, and all the boys made a big deal out of it, which was pretty cool,” he said.
“I got to call mum and dad after that, which was even more special.
“Friday night definitely wasn’t the result we wanted, but I got to play 20 minutes, and it was pretty exciting.
“Talking selfishly, it was probably a good time to come on when I did (down 38-12). The way the game was going, there wasn’t any pressure on me. I just got to come on and play eyes up and play freely.
“We scored a try after a couple of minutes and I got to kick that, and that settled my nerves a bit.
“We got torn to shreds a little bit, so it was a bit of a rude shock, but it was a good little wake-up call for us as a team as well.”
Making the moment even more memorable was getting to debut in front of family, friends and former teammates, who had travelled from all across the state to be in attendance.
“I had to try not to laugh every time I got up to warm up or even just stood up because they were all going off their heads and cheering. I was trying to be professional and not look up and rev them up,” Harvey said.
“It was incredibly special having them there. Especially going up there after the game and seeing mum and dad’s faces and how proud they were.
“There was so much family up there, and schoolmates, and mates from Sydney as well. I can’t even put it into words how it felt. having all that support.
“Just so special.”
